Did you watch the World Cup? An astounding estimated one billion people tuned in to watch the Germans against the Argentinians for the riveting final match.
Rahul’s blog post was about how Nike’s profits recently soared because of the brand recognition they got from the FIFA World Cup. The company undoubtedly used the World Cup to showcase new products such as the GS cleats. The increased brand exposure took Nike from being one of the top 20 brands to being at the forefront alongside leading companies such as Apple and Google.
I thought this was an interesting article because when watching the World Cup, most people think to focus on the game of soccer. While watching, we are subconsciously exposed to many sponsoring brands like Adidas, Coca-Cola, and Nike that sponsored team uniforms. All I could think while watching these games was about how much I wanted a brand new pair of Nike Mercurial Suppeflys that Cristiano Ronaldo was wearing. No one immediately thinks that he is succumbing to these brands; therefore, this is clearly an impactful marketing tactic because it creates a brand awareness and retention. Adidas dominated the soccer market until Nike came into play, where now, the market is spilt quite evenly. There are many debates as to which brand “won the World Cup”, meaning which company got the most exposure and subsequently increased market share. It can be deduced that Nike’s significant profit increase was a direct correlation with the World Cup and from famous athletes that market the brand.
Ronaldo shows off his Nike sponsored clothing